As well known, side view mirrors of a vehicle are essential for driving in order for a driver to safely change lanes and to detect rear vehicles.
An electric adjustment method for adjusting an angle of a side view mirror of a vehicle using an actuator module is available, which enables a driver to adjust the angle of the mirror by manipulating a button inside the vehicle. A cable adjustment method enables a driver to adjust the angle of the mirror using a cable connected to the inside of a vehicle. A manual adjustment method has been used in which a driver manually adjusts the angle of the mirror outside a vehicle.
An electric folding method using an electric unit and a manual folding method using shafts, springs, etc. have been used to fold side view mirrors.
The electric adjustment method of enabling a driver to adjust the angle of the mirror by manipulating the button inside the vehicle is commonly used, however, lower-cost vehicles or commercial vehicles still use the manual adjustment method.
FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate a side view mirror based on a manual adjustment method according to the related art.
In FIGS. 1A and 1B, a reference numeral 1 represents a housing of a side view mirror, and a reference numeral 2 represents an adjustable mirror installed in the housing 1.
The mirror 2 is mounted in the opening of the housing 1, and the housing 1 is provided to protect the mirror 2 from being damaged or from shock caused by outside obstacles. The housing 1 has a structure that is rotatable up/down and left/right directions in 360 degrees and is attached on a cover 3 of a vehicle body (specifically, a door panel).
Further, a cap 4 having a half concave ball shape is provided in the lower part of the housing 1. A bracket 5 having a convex ball shape is inserted into and coupled with the cap 4 in the upper part of the cover 3.
The cap 4 of the housing 1 and the bracket 5 of the cover 3 are coupled with each other through a shaft 6 by bolt fastened, and a spring 7 is compressively interposed between a top of the shaft 6 and a top of the cap 4.
The housing 1 is fixed by the spring 7 with respect to the cover 3, and the tension of the spring 7 varies by a tightening torque of a bolt which is to couple the shaft 6.
Accordingly, in order to obtain an adequate side view, a driver needs to adjust the mirror 2 in the housing 1 provided outside the vehicle. Also, in order to protect a pedestrian when the side view mirror collides with the pedestrian, the housing 1 can rotate according to the applied force to be folded or unfolded.
That is, when an external pressure is applied to the housing 1 from the outside of the vehicle, the housing 1 rotates with respect to the shaft 6 to be folded or unfolded, and at this time, the cap 4 slides along the surface of the bracket 5 since the cap 5 is ball-jointed with the bracket 5.
However, the manual adjustment method for side view mirrors as described above is inconvenient because the driver need to manually adjust the angle of the mirror outside the vehicle and fold or unfold the side view mirrors.
In other words, the driver may need to stretch out to adjust the angle of the mirror after opening the window of the vehicle or get out of the vehicle to adjust the angle of the mirror. Also, since the driver touches the mirror with his/her hand, the surface of the mirror may get fingerprint stain.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention, and therefore, it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.